Darren Doye

Darren Doye Description

Darren Doye grew up in Bendigo, Victoria. Influenced by Americans Robert Rauschenberg, Andy Warhol and Robert Motherwell, as well as Australian greats Arthur Boyd and Sydney Nolan, Darren took up painting after a childhood love of drawing. He studied Fine Art at Ballarat University and some years later completed a Diploma of Education. His work is represented in private collections both in Australia and Europe.

The most recent series of Darren’s paintings combine woodcut prints and traditional oil painting techniques. Woodcuts are the earliest known form of Printmaking. It is a time consuming process where an image is carved into a wooden plate in reverse, to ensure the image is correctly orientated after printing. Most of the paintings are crafted on canvas, another traditional methodology. Darren then manipulates the paint surface using palette knives and brushes to create a variety of textures and points of interest for the viewer.

Darren has a keen interest in the Australian landscape and way of life. Through combining well known Melbourne icons such as the Nylex clock and the Skipping Girl Vinegar neon sign Darren invites the viewer on a journey of recognisable Melbourne landmarks. He encourages the viewer to read and personalise the narrative, playing on our connection to places and spaces evoking feelings of nostalgia.

Darren often places the urban landmarks within rural landscapes, which pays homage to the Artist's country roots. The inclusion of grass-covered paddocks also alludes to the impact of the continuing urban sprawl upon the surrounding countryside and rural communities.

Darren Doye Statement

Intermodal by Darren Doye (September 2015 Solo Exhibition)

In the 1950’s, intermodal shipping containers became the international standard for moving goods from destination to destination without having to unload and reload the freight across different modes of transport. In subsequent years, these versatile steel boxes have been repurposed and reinterpreted, and the modern human uses them for anything from storage solutions to retail shopping spaces. Some contemporary architects have even turned them into avante-garde dwellings. This evolution of the shipping container has changed the relationship society has with them. What was once a means to move a product efficiently from A to B, has now become the space in which to house not only our nearest and dearest physical possessions, but our nearest and dearest family members.

This evolution has been the starting point for Darren Doye’s artwork on display in his latest exhibition at Manyung Gallery in Malvern. He has accurately portrayed animals used for transporting goods in the past such as Donkeys, Camels and Elephants and morphed them with shipping containers. The transformed animals, complete with logistical adverts on the sides of their boxes, stand isolated in front of brightly coloured backgrounds as if lit dramatically by a bright spotlight. He takes the concept further to include other animals like Zebra’s, Giraffes and Rhino’s creating a light-hearted metaphor for globalization and the migratory lifestyle of the modern world.

These pieces, along with Darren’s famous iconic walls and cow paintings, are a depiction of a simpler life where the journey was often as important as the destination. As modern society becomes more obsessed with productivity gains, one has to ask are we missing out on something along the way?